Article transfer mechanism

ABSTRACT

Article transfer mechanism or apparatus for changing the direction of movement of articles while maintaining the orientation of the articles, including an infeed conveyor conveying articles in a first direction while in a predetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor having a continuous belt with a plurality of groups of rollers thereon with windows therebetween receiving articles from the infeed conveyor, a plate disposed below the lower reach of the transfer conveyor and closing at least one of the windows to provide a container for an article deposited thereon, structure for rotating the groups of rollers to cause the rollers to move an article deposited thereon into the adjacent window, an article conveyor having a plurality of pockets open at the top for receiving articles from the plate of a transfer conveyor for conveying the articles in a different direction from that of the infeed conveyor; there also is shown conveyors for equally spacing randomly spaced articles and for laterally aligning articles.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of the application for United StatesLetters Patent, Ser. No. 833,435 filed Sept. 15, 1977 for ArticleTransfer Mechanism, now U.S. Letters Pat. No. 4,176,741 granted Dec. 4,1979.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to improvements in articletransfer apparatus or mechanisms, and specifically to the provision ofarticle transfer mechanisms wherein the direction of movement of thearticles may be changed while maintaining the orientation of thearticles fixed.

Many types of article transfer mechanisms have been provided heretofore.However, none of these prior transfer mechanisms have been as simple andrugged in construction as the article transfer mechanisms in the presentinvention, and still have the ability to change the direction ofmovement, such as at right angles, of the articles while maintaining afixed orientation thereof in space.

An exemplar of the heretofore more complicated transfer mechanisms isillustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,941,233 granted Mar. 2, 1976 to F. Aiuolaet al. This patent shows a relatively complicated suction transferdevice that serves to change the direction of travel of the articles 90°but also changes the orientation thereof in space.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an article transfer apparatus ormechanism that can change the direction of movement of articles, forexample through 90°, while maintaining the orientation of the articlesin space.

This is accomplished in the present invention, and it is an object ofthe present invention to accomplish these desired results, by providinga transfer mechanism that includes an infeed conveyor for conveyingarticles in a first direction while maintaining the articles in apredetermined orientation, the transfer conveyor having a plurality ofcontainers thereon open at the tops and bottoms thereof for receivingarticles through the tops thereof from the infeed conveyor in thepredetermined orientation, an article conveyor having a plurality ofpockets thereon open at the tops thereof for receiving articles throughthe tops thereof from the transfer conveyor in the predeterminedorientation for conveying the articles in a direction different fromthat of the infeed conveyor, retainer structure closing the bottoms ofeach of the containers as it arrives in position to receive an articlefrom the infeed conveyor and opening the bottom of each of thecontainers as it arrives in position to deposit an article into one ofthe pockets on the article conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide an article transfermechanism of the type set forth wherein the transfer conveyor is formedof an endless belt with alternating groups of rollers and windows alongthe length thereof, the infeed conveyor depositing an article onto thetransfer conveyor with the articles in the predetermined orientation,support structure disposed below a reach of the transfer conveyortemporarily to support articles deposited in the windows of the transferconveyor, and structure for rotating the rollers to feed articlesdeposited thereon into an adjacent window for temporary support on thesupport structure.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an article transfermechanism of the type set forth wherein the support structure is a platedisposed below the lower reach of the transfer conveyor and closing atleast one of the windows between the adjacent groups of rollers toprovide a container for articles deposited in a window on the transferconveyor and to support the article as it is conveyed by the transferconveyor.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an article transfermechanism for equally spacing and aligning and changing the direction ofmovement of the articles while maintaining the orientation of thearticles, the transfer mechanism including an infeed conveyor forconveying randomly spaced articles in a first direction whilemaintaining the articles in a predetermined orientation, a spacingconveyor having a plurality of equally spaced article supports thereonfor receiving articles from the infeed conveyor in the predeterminedorientation, spacing mechanism associated with the spacing conveyor forpositioning one article on an article support while maintaining thearticle in a predetermined orientation, an aligning conveyor forreceiving the equally spaced articles from the spacing conveyor andhaving mechanism for aligning the articles laterally while maintainingthe equal spacing thereof and the predetermined orientation thereof, atransfer conveyor having a plurality of conveyors thereon open at thetops and bottoms thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereoffrom the aligning conveyor with the articles in the predeterminedorientation, an article conveyor having a plurality of equally spacedpockets thereon open at the tops thereof for receiving the articlesthrough the tops thereof from the transfer conveyor in the predeterminedorientation for conveying the articles in a direction different fromthat of the infeed conveyor, and retainer structure closing the bottomof each of the containers as it arrives in position to receive anarticle from the aligning conveyor and opening the bottom of each of thecontainers as it arrives in position to deposit an article into one ofthe pockets on the article conveyor.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an improved spacingand aligning mechanism of the type set forth above.

A further object of the invention is to provide an article transfermechanism of the type set forth including an infeed conveyor forconveying equally spaced articles in a first direction while maintainingthe articles in a predetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor havinga plurality of equally spaced containers thereon open at the tops andbottoms thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof from theinfeed conveyor with the articles in the predetermined orientation,drive mechanism for moving the transfer conveyor and the containersthereon through an essentially horizontal circular path whilemaintaining the containers in the predetermined orientation, an articleconveyor having a plurality of equally spaced pockets thereon open atthe tops thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof fromthe transfer conveyor in the predetermined orientation for conveyingarticles in a direction different from that of the infeed conveyor, andretainer structure closing the bottom of each of the containers as itarrives in position to receive an article from the infeed conveyor andan opening in the bottom of each of the containers as it arrives inposition to deposit an article into one of the pockets on the articleconveyor.

A still further object of the invention is to provide improved transferconveyors of the types set forth above.

Further features of the invention pertain to the particular arrangementof the parts of the article transfer mechanism and of the transferconveyors, whereby the above outlined and additional operating featuresthereof are attained. The invention, both as to its organization andmethod of operation, together with further features and advantagesthereof will best be understood with reference to the followingspecification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view with certain portions broken away of a firstembodiment of an article transfer mechanism in accordance with andembodying the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view with certain portions broken away of the articletransfer mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an end view as seen from the left of FIGS. 1 and 2 of thearticle transfer mechanism therein;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a portion of the rollerconveyor incorporated in the article transfer mechanism of FIGS. 1 to 3;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a second embodiment of an article transfermechanism made in accordance with and embodying the principles of thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view with certain portions broken away ofthe article transfer mechanism of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a bar of soap that can be successfullyhandled using the article transfer mechanisms of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a side view of a third embodiment of an article transfermechanism made in accordance with and embodying the principles of thepresent invention and incorporating therein an article spacing andaligning mechanism;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of the mechanism of FIG.8, and specifically a portion of the aligning conveyor and the transferconveyor and the article conveyor thereof;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged view in section along the line of 10--10 of FIG.9;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged view in section along the line 11--11 of FIG. 9;and

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a portion of the article transfer mechanismillustrated in FIG. 9.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4 of the drawings, there is illustrated a firstpreferred embodiment of an article transfer apparatus or mechanismgenerally designated by numeral 100 and made in accordance with andembodying the principles of the present invention. The article transfermechanism 100 includes an infeed conveyor in the form of a chute 110 forconveying articles in a first direction while maintaining the articlesin a predetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor 120 receivingarticles in the form of toothpaste tubes 50 from the infeed conveyor110, an article conveyor 180 that receives the tubes 50 from thetransfer conveyor 120, and a motor 150 that drives the transfer conveyor120 and the article conveyor 180.

The article transfer mechanism 100 is generally useful in receivingarticles moving in one direction and changing the direction of movementthrough 90°, all while maintaining the longitudinal orientation of thearticle as received from the source of articles. One preferred articlethat may be handled using the article transfer mechanism 100 aretoothpaste tubes generally designated by the numeral 50. Each tube 50includes the usual body 51 that is flattened and closed at one end 52and threadedly receives a cap 55 at the other end thereof.

The various parts of the article transfer mechanism 100 are mounted upona frame designated generally by the numeral 101 and including four legs102 joined at the top by top members 103 that are arrangedlongitudinally and cross members 105 arranged laterally, the crossmembers 105 preferably being of angle iron construction as illustrated.There also are provided side members 104, all of the named members andlegs being interconnected by suitable connectors 106.

The chute 110 is mounted upon the frame 101 by means of a mountingbracket 111 (see particularly FIG. 3) and is open at the lefthand end asviewed in FIG. 3 to receive articles such as toothpaste tubes 50 from asource 60 thereof, the tubes 50 being fed to the chute 110 cap endfirst. The chute 110 includes more particularly a concavely curvedbottom wall 112 with two upstanding side walls 113 carrying flanges 114for assistance in mounting the chute 110. The tubes 50 are delivered capend first from the lower end of the chute 110 in the direction of thearrow 119 (see FIG. 3) and fall upon the lower reach of the transferconveyor 120. A stop plate 115 is provided to contact the cap 55 toposition the tubes 50 essentially centrally of the transfer conveyor120, and a guide 116 is provided to ensure that the tubes 50 do notrebound from the stop plate 115 off of the transfer conveyor 120. Theguide 116 is mounted on a bracket 117 secured to the frame 101, theupper end of the guide 116 being bent at an obtuse angle to the left asviewed in FIG. 3 to provide a guide flange 118.

The transfer conveyor 120 receives the tubes 50 from the chute 110 asdescribed above along the lower reach thereof (see particularly FIGS. 1and 3), the exit end of the chute 110 disposed to the right in FIG. 3being disposed between the upper and lower reaches of the transferconveyor 120. The transfer conveyor 120 includes two laterally spacedapart endless belts or chains 121 which are arranged each in a closedloop with a generally horizontal elongated upper reach and a generallyhorizontally arranged lower reach joined by curved portions extendingaround support sprockets 140 and 145 to be described more fullyhereinafter. Referring to FIG. 4, the details of construction of one ofthe chains 121 will be described, each of the chains 121 being made upof two parallel rows of overlapping links 122 having spacers 123disposed therebetween, pins 124 passing through and interconnectingpairs of links on each side of a spacer 123. Disposed at spaced apartpoints along the belts 121 are groups 125 of rollers 126, each of thegroups 125 containing six of the rollers 126 as illustrated. Each of therollers 126 is essentially circular in cross section and is providedwith an opening therethrough that receives a mounting shaft 128. Therollers 126 are mounted in groups of three between the endless belts 121by mounts 134 that are secured to adjacent ones of the links 122 on theendless belts 121. Two of the mounts 130 are arranged next to each otheron each side of a group 125, opposed pairs of mounts 130 receiving theends of three of the shafts 128 so as to mount three of the rollers 126thereon. This mounting of the rollers 126 in groups of three facilitatesthe movement of the group 125 around the support sprockets for thetransfer conveyor 120. Each roller group 125 has a resilient endlessbelt 135 disposed therearound (see particularly FIG. 1) for cooperationtherewith to form a drivable section, and providing a smooth supportsurface for articles received thereon. It further is pointed outreferring to FIG. 1 that the roller groups 125 are longitudinally spacedapart around endless belts 121 with adjacent ends of adjacent rollergroups 125 providing windows 136 therebetween open at the tops andbottoms thereof.

The rear of the lefthand end of the transfer conveyor 120 as viewed inFIG. 1 is supported by two rear support sprockets 140 that are mountedon a shaft 141 journaled in brackets 142 disposed on the main frame 101.The forward or righthand end of the transfer conveyor 120 as viewed inFIG. 1 is supported by two laterally spaced apart front supportsprockets 145 that are mounted on a shaft 146 that is journaled inbrackets 147 mounted on the main frame 101. The shaft 146 extendslaterally beyond the frame 101 as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3 and carries onthe outer end thereof a drive sprocket 148 that engages a chain 149 soas to provide drive power for the transfer conveyor 120.

In order to drive the transfer conveyor 120, a motor 150, preferablyelectric in character, has been provided and includes an output shaft151 carrying a sprocket 152. The sprocket 152 engages the drive chain149 so as to drive the transfer conveyor 120 through the sprocket 148and the shaft 146. The direction of movement of the transfer conveyor120 is designated by the arrow 129, the upper reach moving to the leftas viewed in FIG. 1 and with the lower reach moving to the right asviewed in FIG. 1. In order to stabilize the movement of the transferconveyor 120, a lower slide 160 (see FIG. 3 particularly) is providedfor supporting each of the endless belts 121 along the lower reachthereof, a slide cover 161 also being provided so as to control upwardmovement of the lower reach of the transfer conveyor 120 as well. Upperslides 162 are provided supporting the upper reach of the transferconveyor 120, the upper slides 162 being supported by brackets 163.

Tubes 50 falling onto the lower reach of the transfer conveyor 120 fromthe chute 110 may fall between two of the roller groups 125 and into andthrough the window 136 therebetween. Accordingly, there is provided asupport or retainer structure 165 which extends from slightly to theleft of the point of entry of the tubes 50 onto the transfer conveyor120 to a forward end 167 which overlies the point where the tubes 50 areto be deposited onto the article conveyor 180. The support plate 165 issecured to the frame 101 by brackets 166 and is preferably "Teflon"coated or chrome plated to reduce the resistance to the sliding of thetubes 50 therealong.

On the other hand, the tubes 50 may fall upon one of the roller groups125 rather than into and through one of the windows 136, in which caseit is necessary to move the tube 50 from the roller group 125 into thenext adjacent and trailing window 136 and onto the support plate 165therebelow. To this end, a resiliently mounted shoe 170 has beenprovided in position to contact the upper surface of the belt 135 on aroller group 125 passing beneath the exit line from the chute 110 (seeFIGS. 1 and 3 particularly). The lower surface of the shoe 170 incontact with the belts 135 has a rubber coating 171 thereon. A mountingbracket 172 secured to the frame 101 is provided carrying an arm 176secured thereto by bolts 177, the arm 176 overlying the shoe 170.Fixedly secured to the shoe 170 are two posts 173 extending upwardlytherefrom through aligned openings in the arm 176 and having the upperends threaded and receiving adjusting nuts 174. Disposed between thelower surface of the arm 176 and the upper surface of the shoe 170 aresprings 175 disposed respectively about associated posts 173. Thesprings 175 serve resiliently to urge the shoe 170, and specifically thecovering 171 thereon, against the upper surface of the belts 135 as theymove therebelow.

The tubes 50 from the chute 110 falling onto the transfer conveyor 120ultimately end up in one of the windows 136 supported by the plate 165,either by falling directly thereinto from the chute 110 or by fallingonto one of the roller groups 125 and being fed therefrom into thetrailing window 136 by means of the contact of the shoe 170 and the belt135 causing the belt 135 and the rollers 126 associated therewith torotate in a counterclockwise direction along the lower reach asillustrated in FIG. 1. As the tubes 50 reach the forward end 167 of thesupport plate 165, they fall onto the article conveyor 180. Asillustrated, the article conveyor 180 includes an endless belt 181 thatis disposed below the forward end of the transfer conveyor 120 (seeFIG. 1) and extends therefrom to the right to a point of discharge.Disposed upon the belt 181 at fixed and equally spaced distancestherealong are buckets or pockets 185 for receiving the tubes 50therein. Each of the buckets 185 has a bottom wall 186 generallyrectangular in shape and secured to the belt 181 and extendingtransversely with respect thereto. The leading edge of the bottom wall186 carries an upstanding leading side wall 187 disposed at a slightobtuse angle with respect to the bottom wall 186, and the trailing edgeof each bottom wall 186 carries a trailing side wall 188 disposedessentially normal to the bottom wall 186, the bucket 185 being open atthe top thereof.

The article conveyor 180, and specifically the belt 181 thereof, issupported by two drive and supporting wheels 190 (only one being shown),the wheel 190 being mounted on a shaft 191 carried in bearings 192mounted on the frame 101. Drive for the supporting wheel 190 is derivedfrom the motor 150 (see FIG. 2 also) via the chain 149 and the sprocket148 that drives the shaft 146. Also mounted on the shaft 146 is a gear153 that meshes with an adjacent gear 154 mounted on the shaft 156supported by the bracket 155 mounted on the frame 101. The shaft 156also carries a sprocket 157 driving a chain 158 that is drivinglyengaged with a sprocket 159 fixed to the shaft 191. In this manner, themotor 150 serves to drive the article conveyor 180 as well as thetransfer conveyor 120, thus to synchronize the movement of these twoconveyors.

It further is pointed out, referring particularly to FIG. 1, that thespacing between the buckets 185 on the article conveyor 180 is equal tothe spacing between the windows 136 in the transfer conveyor 120, andfurthermore that one of the buckets 185 on the article conveyor 180 isalways disposed immediately below one of the windows 136 in the transferconveyor 120 when the bucket 185 and the window 136 arrive at theforward end 167 of the support plate 165. Due to the synchronization ofthe movements of the transfer conveyor 120 and the article conveyor 180,and the windows 136 and the buckets 185 thereon respectively, there isalways a bucket 185 in position to receive an article 50 that isdisposed within a window 136 and upon the support plate 165 at theforward end 167 of the support plate 165.

The operation of the article transfer mechanism 100 is as follows. Tubes50 are dropped one by one from the the source 60 down the chute 110,with the cap 55 disposed forwardly and downwardly, the tubes 50 beingfed usually at irregular intervals with no effort to synchronizemovement thereof with that of the transfer conveyor 120. The transferconveyor 120 is moving in the direction of the arrows 129 driven by themotor 150, so that the lower reach thereof is moving to the right asviewed in FIG. 1, i.e., the transfer conveyor 120 is moving in acounterclockwise direction. The motor 150 simultaneously is driving thearticle conveyor in synchronism with the transfer conveyor 120 and inthe direction of the arrows 189 in a clockwise direction. Furthermorethe windows 136 are each aligned with a bucket 185 when they arrive atthe forward or discharge end 167 of the support plate 165, and aremoving in the same direction and to the right as viewed in FIG. 1.

As the tubes 50 arrive at the lower end of the chute 110, thelongitudinal axes thereof are aligned transversely of the conveyors 120and 180, and the article transfer mechanism 100 serves to retain thisorientation throughout the transfer cycle, but changes the direction ofmovement from longitudinal down the chute 110 to translational along theconveyors 120 and 180. Upon arriving at the lower end of the chute 110,the tube 50 falls therefrom and against the stop plate 115, the cap 55striking the stop plate 115, and the guide 116 assuring that the tube 50does not bounce off of the lower reach of the transfer conveyor 120. Incertain cases, the tube 50 may fall directly into one of the windows 136and onto the support plate 165 closing the bottom of the associatedwindow 136 and will then be carried along the support plate 165 to thedischarge end 167 thereof where it will fall into a bucket 185 on thearticle conveyor 180.

In other instances, the tube 50 will fall onto one of the roller groups125, and specifically onto the upper reach of the belt 135 associatedtherewith. In such a case, the contact of the shoe 170, and specificallythe covering 171, with the upper reach of the belt 135 will cause thebelt 135 and the associated rollers 126 to move in a counterclockwisedirection and thus feed the tubes 50 rearwardly and to the left asviewed in FIG. 1 into the next trailing window 136 and onto the supportplate 165. As the window 136 containing the tube 50 arrives at thedischarge end 167 of the support plate 165, it will be positioned overone of the buckets 185 on the article conveyor 180 and will fallthereinto.

There is illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings a second preferredembodiment of an article transfer mechanism 200 made in accordance withand embodying the principles of the present invention. The articletransfer mechanism 200 includes an infeed conveyor 210 feeding orconveying articles, such as pouches 70, from a source thereof in a firstdirection while maintaining the articles in a predetermined orientationto a transfer conveyor 220 which in turn deposits the pouches on anarticle conveyor for feeding to a subsequent processing equipment suchas a cartoner 295.

The infeed conveyor 210 is in the form of a continuous belt 211 carriedby support rollers 212 (only one being shown) mounted on shafts 213. Adrive motor (not shown) drives the belt 211 in the direction of thearrow 219 so that the upper reach is driven towards a discharge end 215disposed adjacent to and overlying the lower reach of the transferconveyor 220. The infeed conveyor 210 receives pouches 70 from a source(not shown) with the longitudinal axes thereof aligned in the directionof travel of the upper reach of the belt 211. The article transfermechanism 200 serves to change the direction of travel of the pouches90° while maintaining the orientation thereof throughout the transferoperation.

The transfer conveyor 220 includes two endless belts 221 that supporttherebetween spaced groups 225 of rollers 226. More specifically, fourof the rollers 226 are illustrated supported upon the endless belt 221in each of the groups 225. The roller groups 225 are equidistantlyspaced along the transfer conveyor 221 with adjacent groups 225 definingwindows 236 that are also equally spaced along the length of thetransfer conveyor 220. The windows 236 are open at the tops and bottomsthereof. The endless belts 221 are supported by front support sprockets240 mounted on a shaft 241 and two rear support sprockets 245 mounted ona shaft 246. A motor (not shown) is also connected to the shaft 246 todrive the shaft 246 in a counterclockwise direction, and thus to drivethe transfer conveyor 220 in a counterclockwise direction and in thedirection of the arrows 229. As a result, the upper reach of thetransfer conveyor 220 moves to the left as viewed in FIG. 6, while thelower reach moves to the right.

The article conveyor 280 is mounted below the transfer conveyor 220 andextends thereunder. The article conveyor 280 includes a continuous belt281 that has upper and lower reaches arranged substantially horizontallyand supported upon driving support wheels 290 (only one being shown),each support wheel 290 being mounted on a shaft 291. Secured to the belt281 along the entire length thereof and equally spaced therealong arebuckets or pockets 285, each bucket having a bottom wall 286 secured tothe belt 281 and upstanding leading and trailing side walls 287 and 288and being open at the top thereof. Drive for the article conveyor 280 isderived from the shaft 246 which carries a pulley 257 engaging a belt258 that drives a pulley 259 secured to the shaft 291. As a result ofthis drive arrangement, the article conveyor is driven in a clockwisedirection, and specifically in the direction of arrows 289, so that theupper reach thereof moves to the right as viewed in FIG. 6 while thelower reach thereof moves to the left.

Since the drive for the article conveyor 280 is derived from that forthe transfer conveyor 220, the two conveyors operate in synchronism. Inaddition, the spacing between the windows 236 on the transfer conveyor280 is equal to the spacing between the buckets 285 on the articleconveyor 280 and furthermore the buckets 285 along the upper reach arein synchronism and positioned immediately below an associated window 236on the transfer conveyor 220.

In the operation of the article transfer mechanism 200, pouches 70 arefed by the infeed conveyor 210 in a lengthwise direction as illustratedin FIG. 5 and are deposited onto the lower reach of the transferconveyor 220. In certain instances, the pouch 70 leaving the infeedconveyor 210 may fall into one of the windows 236 and onto a plate orretainer structure 265 disposed immediately therebelow and closing thebottom of the associated window. A pouch 70 in such a window 236 will befed by the roller group 225 behind it to the forward end 267 of thesupport plate 265 where it will fall into a bucket 285 on the articleconveyor 280 disposed therebelow. In other instances, the pouch leavingthe discharge end 215 of the infeed conveyor 210 will fall onto one ofthe roller groups 225. In such a case, the upper surface of the plate265 presses against the lower surfaces of the roller 226 in that rollergroup 225 to cause the rollers 226 to rotate in a counterclockwisedirection and feed the pouch 70 off of the roller group 225 and into thetrailing window 236 and onto the plate 265. Again the trailing rollergroup 225 will push the pouch 70 along the plate 265 to the forward end267 thereof where it will fall into a bucket 285 on the article conveyor280 disposed therebelow. The pouch 70 is then conveyed by the articleconveyor 280 to the cartoner 295 for further processing.

Referring to FIGS. 7 to 12, there is disclosed a third preferredembodiment of an article transfer mechanism 300 made in accordance withand embodying the principles of the present invention. The articletransfer mechanism 300 includes an infeed conveyor 310, a spacingconveyor 320 provided with a spacing mechanism 330, an aligning conveyor340, a transfer conveyor 350 and an article conveyor 380.

Referring particularly to FIG. 7, there is illustrated a bar 80 of soapwhich is particularly adapted to be handled by the article transfermechanism 300. The bar 80 when fed to the article transfer mechanism 300is fresh from a press or molding machine and has not yet hardened,whereby it is delicate and fragile and must be handled with particularcare. As illustrated, the bar 80 is of generally rectangular form buthas a top surface 81 that is convexly curved and a bottom surface 84that is correspondingly concavely curved. The surfaces 81 and 84 arejoined by two end surfaces 82 and two side surfaces 83.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 12 of the drawings, the details ofconstruction of the article transfer mechanism 300 will be described.The infeed conveyor 310 conveys articles in a first direction whilemaintaining the articles in a predetermined orientation and includes aconveyor belt 311 mounted on support rollers 312. The belt 311 carries aseries of bars 80 that are randomly placed thereon both as tolongitudinal spacing and as to lateral alignment. The bars 80 are fedfrom the discharge end 315 of the infeed conveyor 310 onto the lefthandend of the spacing conveyor 320 as viewed in FIG. 8, the bars 80 movingin the general direction of the arrow 319.

The spacing or transfer conveyor 320 includes two essentially parallelendless belts or chains 321 that may be constructed and arranged likethe endless belts or chains 121 described above with respect to thearticle transfer mechanism 100. The endless belts 321 carry articlesupports 322 that are equally spaced longitudinally therealong andalternate with groups 325 of rollers 326. The rollers 326 are supportedon shafts 327 carried by the endless belts 321, the groups 325 of therollers 326 (five rollers 326 being shown in each group 325) beingcovered by an endless belt 328, whereby the rollers 326 serve to supportthe belt 328 to provide a resilient smooth surface to receive any of thebars 80 deposited thereon. The endless belts 321 are supported onsprockets 323 mounted on shafts 324 suitably mounted in a support frame(not shown). The sprockets 323 serve to move the endless belts 321 andthe article supports 322 and the groups 325 of rollers 326 in thedirections of the arrows 329, i.e., the upper reach moving to the rightas viewed in FIG. 8 and the lower reach moving to the left as viewed inFIG. 8.

Certain of the bars 80 from the end feed conveyor 310 will be depositeddirectly upon the flexible article supports 322 and will be carriedthereby to the inlet end of the aligning conveyor 340. However, sincethe bars 80 are randomly spaced along the infeed conveyor 310, certainof the bars 80 will be deposited upon one of the groups 325 of rollers326. In order to feed such a bar off of the roller group 325 and ontothe next adjacent and trailing article support 322, a spacing mechanism330 has been provided below the upper reach of the spacing conveyor 320.The mechanism includes a V-belt 331 supported by pulleys 332 mounted onshafts 333 journaled on the frame (not shown). The upper reach 335 ofthe belt 331 is positioned to contact the roller groups 325 as they passthereover, the upper reach 335 of the V-belt 331 moving to the right asviewed in FIG. 8 and at a speed approximately 50% greater than the speedof movement of the spacing conveyor 320 which causes the lower reach ofthe engaged belt 328 to be moved relatively to the right as viewed inFIG. 8 thereby moving the upper reach of the engaged belt 328 to theleft to deposit the bar 80 thereon upon the next adjacent and trailingarticle support 322. As the upper reach of the spacing conveyor 320approaches the inlet end of the aligning conveyor 340, the bars 80 areeach disposed upon an article support 322 in position to be fed onto thealigning conveyor 340.

The details of construction of the aligning conveyor 340 are bestillustrated in FIGS. 8 to 10 of the drawings, the conveyor 340 includinga continuous belt 341 carried by support pulleys 342 and also passingover a drive pulley 343 mounted on a shaft 344. Mounted above andcooperating with the belt 341 are two laterally spaced apart guide belts345 that are continuous in construction. The guide belts 345 aresupported by pulleys 346 carried on shafts 347 and provided with grooves348 around the periphery thereof to receive the guide belts 345 that arecircular in cross section. The guide belts 345 are preferably formed ofa polyurethane resin and serve to reduce the friction and prevent soapbuild-up as the bars 80 are fed by the aligning conveyor 340. The entryends of the guide belt 345 are slightly further spaced apart asillustrated in FIG. 12 so as to provide positive lateral alignment forthe bars 80 as they are fed along the aligning conveyor 340 in thedirection of the arrows 349.

The bars 80 as they leave the aligning conveyor 340 are in lateralalignment and are equally spaced so that they may be fed into containers355 on the associated transfer conveyor 350, see FIGS. 9, 10 and 11particularly. The transfer conveyor 350 includes an upper plate or wheel351 mounted on a drive shaft 352 that is arranged essentially verticallywhereby the upper plate 351 is rotated in essentially a horizontal planeand in a counterclockwise direction as indicated by the arrow 359 inFIG. 9. Formed in the periphery of the upper plate 351 are eightrectangular notches 353 equiangularly arranged around the upper plate351.

Associated with each of the notches 353 is a container 355, wherebyeight of the containers 355 have been provided so as to receive one ofthe bars 80 therein (see FIG. 10) and is open both at the top and thebottom thereof. Each container 355 is formed by two side walls 356joined by end walls 357, one of the end walls 357 having an upper arm358 fixedly secured thereto.

Disposed below the upper plate 351 is a lower plate or retainerstructure 360 mounted upon a vertical shaft 364 for rotation therewith,the longitudinal axis of the shaft 364 being offset a predetermineddistance laterally with respect to the longitudinal axis of the driveshaft 352 as used in FIG. 9. By a connection hereafter described, thelower plate 360 rotates with and in the same direction as the upperplate 351, but offset laterally with respect thereto as viewed in FIG.9, whereby the lower plate 360 also rotates in a counterclockwisedirection as viewed in FIG. 9, and in the direction of the arrow 359.The lower plate 360 has 8 holes therein which correspond to the 8notches 353 and the 8 containers 355 on the upper plate 351. A follower365 is provided for each of the containers 355 and is disposed in one ofthe openings in the lower plate 360, each follower 365 being mounted ona lower arm 367 fixedly secured to a pivot post 366 that extendsupwardly through the upper plate 351 and is fixedly secured to theadjacent upper arm 358 on the associated container 355. The distancebetween the center lines of the follower 365 and the post 366 is equalto the distance between the longitudinal center lines of the shafts 352and 364. As a consequence, the follower 365 guided by the lower plate360 and acting through the pivot post 366 and the arms 358 and 367serves to hold the associated container 355 in the fixed orientationillustrated in FIG. 9, thereby to maintain the bar 80 in the fixedorientation that the bar 80 is in as it leaves the aligning conveyor 340and is dropped into one of the containers 355 on the transfer conveyor350.

As one of the bars 80 drops from the forward end of the aligningconveyor 340, it is in alignment to fall into one of the containers 355disposed therebelow. At this time, the container 355 is disposed overthe upper plate 351 so that the bottom thereof is closed. This conditionprevails until the parts reach a position such that the container 355 isdirectly below the drive shaft 352 as viewed in FIG. 9, at which timethe container 355 is in alignment with the associated rectangular notch353. At this time the bar 80 falls through the notch 353 and onto aslide 368 that is mounted on the frame and has two fingers 369 thatserve gently to drop the bar 80 from the container 355 on the transferconveyor 350 onto the article conveyor 380. The container 355 thencontinues in a counterclockwise direction, always maintained in the sameorientation and is again introduced below the discharge end of thealigning conveyor 340 to receive another bar 80 therefrom.

The article conveyor 380 is formed as a continuous belt 381 suitablysupported for travel to the right in the direction of the arrows 389 inFIG. 10 on a support (not shown). Disposed at equally distanced pointsalong the belt 381 are buckets or pockets 385, each of the buckets 385having a bottom wall 386 disposed transversely and having the leadingand trailing edges thereof provided with a leading side wall 387 and atrailing side wall 388, respectively. In order to accommodate thefingers 369 in the slide 368, the side walls 387 and 388 are providedwith notches 397 and 398, respectively.

The transfer conveyor 350 and the article conveyor 380 are operated insynchronism so that the containers 355 and the buckets 385 move at thesame rate. Furthermore, the conveyors 350 and 380 and the containers 355and the buckets 385 thereon are arranged so that one of the buckets 385is disposed immediately below one of the containers 355 when these partsare immediately below the drive shaft 352 as viewed in FIG. 9, i.e.,when the container 355 is in alignment with the associated rectangularnotch 353 to drop a bar 80 therethrough and into the associated bucket385 disposed therebelow.

The several conveyors in the article transfer mechanism 300 have therates of travel thereof adjusted to accommodate the article in the formof the bar 80 and the various manipulations to be effected thereon. Theinfeed conveyor 310 operates at a speed expressed in inches per minutethat is only slightly more than the length of the product or articlelength to be conveyed thereby, i.e., the length of the bar 80. Thelinear speed of the spacing conveyor 320 is essentially equal to thespeed of the infeed conveyor 310 but is slower than that of the aligningconveyor 340. As mentioned heretofore, the V-belt 331 operates at aspeed that is essentially 50% greater than that of the spacing conveyor320. The aligning conveyor 340 and the transfer conveyor 350 and thearticle conveyor 380 operate at the same speed and in synchronism, thatspeed being slightly faster than that of the infeed conveyor 310 and thespacing conveyor 320, and may typically be approximately 25% faster.

In the operation of the article transfer mechanism 300, articles such asthe bars 80 are fed from a machine such as a soap molding machine ontothe infeed conveyor 310, the bars 80 being spaced longitudinally thereonrandomly and being in no particular lateral alignment. The infeedconveyor 310 feeds the bars 80 in the direction of the arrows 319 ontothe spacing conveyor 320 which is traveling at a linear speed equal tothat of the infeed conveyor 310.

The bar 80 fed from the discharge end 315 of the infeed conveyor 310 maybe deposited upon one of the article supports 322 directly, in whichcase the bar 80 is carried by the article support 322 the length of thespacing conveyor 320 and is deposited onto the aligning conveyor 340. Inother cases the bar 80 from the discharge end 315 of the infeed conveyor310 falls upon one of the roller groups 325. In this case, the spacingmechanism 330, and specifically the V-belt 331 thereof contacting thelower reach of the roller belt 328 and moving at a speed essentially 50%greater than that of the spacing conveyor 320, will serve to move theupper reach of the roller belt 328 to the left and deposit the bar 80upon the next adjacent trailing article support 322. As a result of theaction of the spacing conveyor 320 and the spacing mechanism 330, all ofthe bars 80 fed from the spacing conveyor 320 are disposed upon articlesupports 322 that are spaced apart a predetermined distance, whereby thebars 80 are all placed upon the aligning conveyor 340 in equally spacedapart longitudinal relation.

The aligning conveyor 340 serves not only to convey the bars 80 to thetransfer conveyor 350, but also serves to correct any lateralmisalignment thereof by the action of the guide belts 345. The guidebelts 345 also gently handle the delicate bars 80 and do not rub anyappreciable amount of material therefrom so as to leave the bars 80unmarred. The bars 80 as they are fed from the aligning conveyor 340 arein lateral alignment and are equally spaced apart longitudinally,although it will be understood that there may be gaps in the spacing,but all of the bars 80 are spaced at predetermined points so as to dropinto one of the buckets 385 on the article conveyor 350. The aligningconveyor 340 operates at a speed slightly greater than that of theinfeed conveyor 310 and the spacing conveyor 320, and at a speedmatching that of the transfer conveyor 350 and the article conveyor 380.

As a bar 80 reaches the discharge end of the aligning conveyor 340, oneof the containers 355 on the transfer conveyor 350 is being positionedbelow the discharge end of the aligning conveyor 340. The bar 80 issoftly and gently dropped from the discharge end of the aligningconveyor 340 onto the upper plate 351 and within the container 355. Thetransfer conveyor 350, and specifically the upper plate 351 and thecontainers 355 thereon continue in a counterclockwise direction asindicated by the arrow 359. During this motion, the follower 365 servesto maintain the container 355 and the bar 80 within in the sameorientation as received from the aligning conveyor 340.

As the container 355 carrying the bar 80 from the aligning conveyor 340arrives at the lowermost position illustrated in FIG. 9, the container355 moves into alignment with the associated rectangular notch 353 andthus permits the bar 80 to fall from the container 355. The bar 80 fallsonto the slide 368 and is guided by the fingers 369 into the bucket 385disposed therebelow. The fingers 369 extend almost to the bottom of theassociated bucket 385 so as gently to deposit the bar 80 therein. Thenotches 397 and 398 in the side walls 387 and 388, respectively,accommodate this downward positioning of the fingers 369. Since thearticle conveyor 380 moves in synchronism with the transfer conveyor350, one of the buckets 385 is always in position to receive one of thebars 80 from an overlying container 355. The article conveyor 380 thenserves to convey the bar 80 to the next processing station.

While there have been described what are at present considered to be thepreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be understood that thevarious modifications may be made therein, and it is intended to coverin the appended claims all such modifications as fall within the truespirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. Article transfer apparatus for changing thedirection of movement of articles while maintaining the orientation ofthe articles, the transfer apparatus comprising an infeed conveyor forconveying articles in a first direction while maintaining the articlesin a predetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor comprising a wheelhaving a plurality of preformed containers thereon open only at the topsand bottoms thereof for receiving articles through the tops from saidinfeed conveyor in the predetermined orientation, guide mechanismsmaintaining said containers oriented in the predetermined orientationduring rotation of said wheel about an essentially vertical axis, anarticle conveyor having a plurality of pockets thereon open at the topsthereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof from saidtransfer conveyor in the predetermined orientation for conveying thearticles in a direction different from that of said infeed conveyor,retainer structure closing the bottom of each of said containers as itarrives in position to receive an article from said infeed conveyor andopening the bottom of each of said containers as it arrives in positionto deposit an article into one of said pockets on said article conveyor,whereby said article transfer apparatus transfers articles from saidinfeed conveyor moving in one direction with the articles in apredetermined orientation and deposits the articles in pockets on saidarticle conveyor moving in another direction while maintaining thearticles in the predetermined orientation.
 2. The article transferapparatus set forth in claim 1, wherein said infeed conveyor is anendless belt supporting the articles on the upper reach thereof, andalso including laterally spaced apart belts engaging the opposite sidesof an article to align and guide the articles.
 3. The article transferapparatus set forth in claim 1, wherein said infeed conveyor and saidtransfer conveyor are synchronized so that the articles on said infeedconveyor are equally spaced longitudinally and aligned laterally and thecontainers on said transfer conveyor are equally spaced.
 4. The articletransfer apparatus set forth in claim 1, wherein said first direction ofsaid infeed conveyor is normal to the another direction of said articleconveyor.
 5. Article transfer apparatus for changing the direction ofmovement of articles while maintaining the orientation of the articles,the transfer apparatus comprising an infeed conveyor for conveyingarticles in a first direction while maintaining the articles in apredetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor formed as an endless beltwith alternating drivable sections and windows along the length thereof,said infeed conveyor depositing an article onto said transfer conveyorwith the articles in the predetermined orientation, support structuredisposed below a reach of said transfer conveyor temporarily to supportarticles deposited in the windows of said transfer conveyor, structurefor driving said drivable sections to feed articles deposited thereoninto an adjacent window for temporary support on said support structure,an article conveyor having a plurality of pockets thereon open at thetops thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof from saidsupport structure and through the windows on said transfer conveyor inthe predetermined orientation for conveying the articles in a directiondifferent from that of said infeed conveyor, whereby said articletransfer apparatus transfers articles from said infeed conveyor movingin one direction with the articles in a predetermined orientation anddeposits the articles in pockets on said article conveyor moving inanother direction while maintaining the articles in the predeterminedorientation.
 6. The article transfer apparatus set forth in claim 5,wherein each of said drivable sections includes a group of rollersarranged laterally of said transfer conveyor, said groups of rollersbeing equally spaced along the length of said endless belt.
 7. Thearticle transfer apparatus set forth in claim 6, wherein a resilientbelt is placed around each group of rollers to be supported thereby,said resilient belt receiving articles thereon and thereafter depositingthe same in the adjacent window.
 8. The article transfer apparatus setforth in claim 5, wherein said structure for driving said drivablesections is a resilient member engaging one of said drivable sections tocause the same to rotate to feed an article on said drivable section toan adjacent window.
 9. An article transfer apparatus for equally spacingand aligning and changing the direction of movement of articles whilemaintaining the orientation of the articles, the transfer apparatuscomprising an infeed conveyor for conveying randomly spaced articles ina first direction while maintaining the articles in a predeterminedorientation, a spacing conveyor having a plurality of equally spacedarticle supports thereon for receiving articles from said infeedconveyor in the predetermined orientation, spacing mechanism associatedwith said spacing conveyor for positioning one article on an articlesupport while maintaining the article in the predetermined orientation,an aligning conveyor for receiving the equally spaced articles from saidspacing conveyor and having mechanism for aligning the articleslaterally while maintaining the equal spacing thereof and thepredetermined orientation thereof, a transfer conveyor having aplurality of containers thereon open at the tops and bottoms thereof forreceiving articles through the tops thereof from said aligning conveyorwith the articles in the predetermined orientation, an article conveyorhaving a plurality of equally spaced pockets thereon open at the topsthereof for receiving the articles through the tops thereof from saidtransfer conveyor in the predetermined orientation for conveying thearticles in a direction different from that of said infeed conveyor, andretainer structure closing the bottom of each of said containers as itarrives in position to receive an article from said aligning conveyorand opening the bottom of each of said containers as it arrives inposition to deposit an article into one of said pockets on said articleconveyor, whereby said article transfer apparatus transfers articlesfrom said infeed conveyor moving in one direction with the articlesrandomly spaced and in a predetermined orientation and equally spacesand laterally aligns and deposits the articles in equally spaced pocketson said article conveyor moving in another direction while maintainingthe articles in the predetermined orientation.
 10. The article transferapparatus set forth in claim 9, wherein said article conveyor has aconveying speed slightly greater than that of said infeed conveyor. 11.The article transfer apparatus set forth in claim 9, wherein said infeedconveyor and said spacing conveyor operate at essentially the sameconveying speed, said aligning conveyor and said transfer conveyor andsaid article conveyor operate at essentially the same conveying speed,the conveying speed of said aligning conveyor and said transfer conveyorand said article conveyor being slightly greater than that of saidinfeed conveyor and said spacing conveyor.
 12. The article transferapparatus set forth in claim 9, wherein said spacing mechanism includesa plurality of rollers disposed in groups between said article supports,a drive belt engaging said groups of rollers along a predeterminedportion of the path of travel of said spacing conveyor and causing saidgroups of rollers to move an article deposited thereon onto an adjacentarticle support.
 13. Article transfer apparatus for changing thedirection of movement of articles while maintaining the orientation ofthe articles, the transfer apparatus comprising an infeed conveyor forconveying equally spaced articles in a first direction while maintainingthe articles in a predetermined orientation, a transfer conveyor havinga plurality of equally spaced containers thereon open at the tops andbottoms thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof fromsaid infeed conveyor with the articles in the predetermined orientation,drive mechanism for moving said transfer conveyor and the containersthereon through an essentially horizontal circular path whilemaintaining said containers in the predetermined orientation, an articleconveyor having a plurality of equally spaced pockets thereon open atthe tops thereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof fromsaid transfer conveyor in the predetermined orientation for conveyingthe articles in a direction different from that of said infeed conveyor,and retainer structure closing the bottom of each of said containers asit arrives in position to receive an article from said infeed conveyorand opening the bottom of each of said containers as it arrives inposition to deposit an article into one of said pockets on said articleconveyor, whereby said article transfer apparatus transfers articlesfrom said infeed conveyor moving in one direction with the articles in apredetermined orientation and deposits the articles in pockets on saidarticle conveyor moving in another direction while maintaining thearticles in the predetermined orientation.
 14. A transfer conveyor fortransferring from an infeed conveyor articles moving in one directionand in a predetermined orientation to an article conveyor having aplurality of pockets thereon and moving in a different direction fromthat of the infeed conveyor, said transfer conveyor comprising anendless belt with alternating drivable sections and windows along thelength thereof, said endless belt being positioned to receive an articlefrom the associated infeed conveyor with the article in thepredetermined orientation, support structure disposed below a reach ofthe endless belt temporarily to support articles deposited in thewindows thereof, and structure for driving said drivable sections tofeed articles deposited thereon into an adjacent window for temporarysupport on said support structure, said support structure having adischarge end for discharging articles from the windows in said endlessbelt into one of the pockets in an associated article conveyor disposedtherebelow in the predetermined orientation for conveying the articlesin a direction different from that of the associated infeed conveyor.15. The transfer conveyor set forth in claim 14, wherein each of saiddrivable sections includes a group of rollers arranged laterally of saidendless belt, said groups of rollers being equally spaced along thelength of said endless belt.
 16. The transfer conveyor set forth inclaim 15, wherein a resilient belt is placed around each group ofrollers to be supported thereby, said resilient belt receiving articlesthereon and thereafter depositing the same in the adjacent window. 17.The transfer conveyor set forth in claim 14, wherein said structure fordriving said drivable sections is a resilient member engaging one ofsaid drivable sections to cause the same to rotate to feed an article onsaid drivable section to an adjacent window.
 18. A transfer conveyor fortransferring from an infeed conveyor articles traveling in a firstdirection and in a predetermined orientation to an article conveyorhaving a plurality of pockets thereon and moving in a differentdirection from that of the infeed conveyor, said transfer conveyorcomprising a continuous belt having a plurality of drivable sectionsthereon with windows between drivable sections, adjacent ones of saiddrivable sections cooperating to receive therebetween articles from theassociated infeed conveyor in the predetermined orientation, a platedisposed below the lower reach of said continuous belt and closing atleast one of said windows between adjacent drivable sections to providesupport for an article deposited in a window on said endless belt and tosupport an article as it is conveyed by said endless belt, and structurefor driving said drivable sections to cause said drivable sections tomove an article deposited thereon into an adjacent one of said windowsand on to said plate, said plate having a discharge end disposed over anassociated article conveyor so as to deposit articles into a pocket fromsaid plate in a predetermined orientation for conveying the articles bythe article conveyor in a direction different from that of theassociated infeed conveyor.
 19. An article transfer apparatus forequally spacing and aligning and changing the direction of movement ofarticles while maintaining the orientation of the articles, the transferapparatus comprising a spacing conveyor having a plurality of equallyspaced article supports thereon for receiving articles from an inletthereto at a predetermined orientation and moving in a first direction,spacing mechanism associated with said spacing conveyor for positioningone article on an article support while maintaining the article in thepredetermined orientation, an aligning conveyor for receiving theequally spaced articles from said spacing conveyor and having mechanismfor aligning the articles laterally while maintaining the equal spacingthereof at a predetermined orientation thereof, a transfer conveyorhaving a plurality of containers thereon open at the tops and bottomsthereof for receiving articles through the tops thereof from the saidaligning conveyor with the articles in the predetermined orientation,and retainer structure closing the bottom of each of said containers asit arrives in position to receive an article from said aligning conveyorand opening the bottom of each of said containers as it arrives inposition to deposit an article onto an associated article conveyor. 20.The article transfer apparatus set forth in claim 19, wherein saidaligning conveyor and said transfer conveyor operate at essentially thesame conveying speed, the conveying speed of said aligning conveyor andsaid transfer conveyor being slightly greater than that of said spacingconveyor.
 21. The article transfer apparatus set forth in claim 19,wherein said spacing mechanism includes a plurality of rollers disposedin groups between said article supports, a drive belt engaging saidgroups of rollers along a predetermined portion of the paths of travelof said spacing conveyor and causing said groups of rollers to move anarticle deposited thereon onto an adjacent article support.